Scouts:

An offensive defenceman that sees the ice well and makes high-percentage plays. Very mobile, poised with the puck, and actively joins the rush. Is great with his stick; possesses a good shot and makes seamless tape-to-tape passes. Not the biggest body, but can out-work bigger opponents for puck possession. All-in-all, an offensive defenceman who will thrive in a system where puck possession is key.

Dunn is a very good skater who moves fast and can take advantage of offensive opportunities. Very confident in his skating and he is a catalyst for creating chances. His skating can make up for mistakes but development requires him to eliminate the unnecessary ones.

An offensive minded defender… a solid skater who uses his speed and mobility to jump into the attack…uses his speed to drive the puck wide and open up lanes for team mates…confident with the puck…moves the puck well, and is very rarely caught out of position…a strong power play quarterback who can see the ice…make a good passes and has a solid shot…smart decisions regarding open teammates and passing lanes…uses his stick well and is positional sound in his own zone…a good offensive blue liner who just needs to round out his game.

OUR TAKE:

With the loss of over-agers Luke Mercer and Jesse Graham from the IceDog blue line at the end of last season, Vince Dunn was able to grab the opportunity to take on a staring role. He didn’t disappoint, ranking among the top defensemen in the CHL in most offensive categories including even strength points (6th), even strength points-per-game (9th), and age adjusted points-per-game (7th).

His offensive success was undoubtedly helped by playing on one of the strongest offensive teams in the OHL which boasted two 2014 first round picks in Brendan Perlini (Coyotes) and Josh Ho-Sang (Islanders), as well as Carter Verhaeghe, who went in the 3rd round of the 2013 draft (Leafs).

Nevertheless, his offensive package hits all the right notes. He plays the game at a very high tempo, with slick acceleration, and excellent vision. At 6’0, he’s a bit smaller than the average NHL defender, and he’s not known for his physical play, so he’ll have to overcome that with his speed and play making ability.

Dunn had an excellent postseason for the IceDogs, scoring 6 goals and 10 points in 8 games. Those are the types of traits that often leave scouts with the “he plays well when it counts” tag, so it’ll be interesting to see if that good last impression leads a team to reaching for him in the first round.

With players like Mike Green, Glen Wesley, Brad Stuart, and Drew Doughty being PCS comparables, Dunn has that “high reward” potential to become a top 4 offensive defensemen, warranting second round consideration. However, with a PCS of 24%, less than 1 in 4 comparable players to Dunn went on to successful NHL careers, so his consensus rankings in the second round make a lot of sense.

Marc-Andre Fleury is having an unbelievable postseason. His current Sv% of .947 doesn’t just lead all goalies in these playoffs, it’s actually the highest Sv% of any goalie in a playoff year since the 1960s (min 8 games) …with one important caveat: he has one round yet to play. I think the biggest question heading into the…